The Centre for Minimal Access Surgery--teaching for tomorrow

The Centre for Minimal Access Surgery (CMAS) was established as a state-of-the-art multidisciplinary technological education and research centre for minimal access surgical techniques. Up-to-date training models were obtained to facilitate skill acquisition. Among these were the Minimal Access Therapy trainer and the Body Form Simulator, which provide simulations of the human form on which students can practise operative procedures. The CMAS also acquired the MIST Virtual Reality system, a computer program that facilitates the acquisition of laparoscopy skills. Finally, the CMAS compiled a multimedia library of resources. While many skills can be gained in these synthetic and didactic environments, they cannot provide all the preparation necessary to practise competently. To facilitate the realtime observation of surgical procedures and the telementoring process, the CMAS has commissioned the development of an integrated videoconferencing system that permits the high-quality, rapid transfer of multi-feed video and audio data of surgical procedures from an operating room to the classroom.